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Given this command:
ex -sc '%!alfa' -cx file
I get this result:
sh: alfa: command not found
which is to be expected. However an unintended side effect of this is that the file is emptied and saved.
Can this command be modified so that if the external command is not found, then Vim bails instead of saving an empty file?
You can use v:shell_error to test whether the external command succeeded or failed. Typically a non-zero result means the command failed.
In that case, you can use :q! to exit the Ex script with the file unmodified. Or, perhaps better, use the :cq! command to have Ex/Vim exit with a non-zero exit code, so your script calling Ex can also detect that something went wrong.
For example:
$ ex -s -c '%!alfa' -c 'if v:shell_error|cq!|endif' -c 'x' file
sh: alfa: command not found
$ echo $?
1
$ cat file
(Original contents of file.)
As a workaround, I am now using the shell builtin type alfa before the Vim call.
echo data > file1 ; vim -u NONE -c "ex -sc '%\!alfa' -cx file2" file1-u NONE(which is a good idea when debugging something). In general i'm confused about what exactly you are performing just as much you are confused about what i am performing. But you are the one with a question, can i ask you to elaborate exactly what you're running? Is it a command-mode ex (a:normal-mode command)? Or you're entering ex-mode? Or you're running ex from the command line?excommand invimbehaves differently from running theexbinary. Not all systems haveexas a call tovim -e. But now I get you. I can replicate it withvim -u NONE -e -sc '%!alfa' -cx file(i believe that is the portable command, not sure if-u NONEis needed)vim -e -scx fileworks as expected but evenvim -e -sc '%!echo >/dev/null' -cx filewrites the empty file.